Decree, Renewed, of August William (1719) of Charles I, Dukes of Brunswick-Luneburg, concerning the prohibited game shooting in the breeding time. Published then Wolfenbüttel August 2, 1719, now Brunswick June 29, 1778. 34.5 x 42.2 cm. 1 page. With large woodcut initial. With the ducal signatures printed together with the L(oco) S(igilli) marks and, finally, that of J. E. F. v. Hoym.

Accompanied by new preliminaries and closing, and by this just formally quite rare, above all, however,

in  its  indirect  evidence  revealing  document

and interesting interpretation of the only orthographically adjusted, otherwise word-for-word up to signature and Loco Sigilli stamp reproduced pre-decree which itself referred to previous ones, that is that high and small chase “within the breeding time usual from old, that is from Candlemas till Bartholomew styl. vet. (from Feb. 13^th till Sep. 4^th) under no pretext, it may have names as it likes, the most trifling game (among which We also understand the free game) which is not allowed sportsmanlike, in specie no deer, roes, nor wild sows to shoot or catch … Otherwise … shall be proceeded with the punishment noted at the publicly set preserve pillars”.

While August William stressed the “significant loss (otherwise threatening) Our hunting grounds” for substantiation only, so Charles additionally refers to the fact that “the harvests in Our country, especially in the area of the cold Harz Mountains, are almost never ended completely towards Aug. 24, and about such time still much grain stands in the field and on the stalk, therefore the damages which are caused by hunting and hounding to the disadvantage of Our faithful subjects”.

The real and quite special charm in this connection the reference to August 24 as the opening of the hunt lately thought to be, at least intellectually, possible now. For after the new calendar Bartholomew fell on this very day as criterion and therefore apple of discord. Because for the huntsman Bartholomew was Bartholomew, if not even, as reprimanded here by Charles, August 14 had to be the day which. To the dukes, however, invariably September 4 was sacred. And quite obviously not just for practical considerations in view of the advantage of the own hunting grounds, so still August William, or that of the farmers as placed into the foreground by Charles as developmentally interesting. For if necessary the latter could be helped by the usual postponement of the deadline.

By making this after all two generations old decree as obviously the last one issued in this matter word-for-word subject of his own will he represents the old time once more in spite of obvious personal flirting with. Only seven years later by decree of August 18, 1785, his successor will not remind of this and indirectly take August 24 as granted for the opening of the hunt. This constitutes

the  special  quality  of  these  two  decrees .

And is not reduced because that one later returned to September 4 as in his decrees of August 23, 1799, or July 30, 1805.

of unused freshness. Only above and below in the wide white margin in the fold minimal tear and hole resp., both backed. – Typographic and larger figurative watermarks, the latter with princely hat. – On the dukes see Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie I, 664 f. and XV, 266 ff. resp.

The large V initial in the version with princely hat and Lower Saxony’s horse without escutcheon, but the additional small crown. Decrees between 1705 and 1749 sold here without these attributes.
Offer no. 12,555 / EUR  391. / Export price EUR  371. (c. US$ 587.) + shipping

„ Danke für den wunderbaren (Ridinger-)Scan … der meine Argumentation zur Verwechslung in der Staffierung der Porzellane dokumentarisch bestens belegt. Darf ich um Ihre Zustimmung bitten, ihn in meiner Arbeit zeigen zu dürfen? “

(Herr J. R., 7. Juni 2004)

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